RPlog:Korynn is Discovered at Selene
Part 1: ISB Control Center "Colonel!" The shout comes from an ISB agent who normally keeps a pretty cool head on his shoulders. Colonel Desson crosses the ISB Command Center on HIMS Inquisitor, stopping just behind the agent's data terminal. "What is it?" "Sir." The agent pulls up a top-priority signal, flashing in bright red across the screen. "They've found him, at Selene." The agent points to the message with a hand. Colonel Desson leans in, reading the message intently, then blinks his eyes in surprise. "What the..." A moment later, the Colonel straightens, and reaches for his comlink. "Mercurio, report to the Command Center, immediately." A few minutes pass, and an apparently just-waking-up ISB Agent comes rushing into the ISB Command Center, panting as he fixes his gloves and his uniform. He straightens himself up, making sure his hair was flat before he gives the half-bow to the Colonel, then rises up once more, his arms folded behind his back. "You called for me, Colonel?" "We just received a level six transmission from Selene." Colonel Desson takes Dreven aside, where he can speak with him quietly. "A Naval Customs Inspection discovered a shipment of type-four sonic motivators, the type used to create artillery-scale sonic weapons." Artillery scale sonic weapons are, of course, completely illegal for non-licensed traders to carry. A smuggler. Colonel Desson's eyes grow cold, icy cold. "Naturally, the inspectors looked at every piece of cargo the trader was carrying, and they found a crate of carbonite hidden inside a cargo tube marked foodstuffs." He pauses for a moment, then turns aside to bring up the message from Selene. "The ISB Commissar on duty there claims that Director Fleming is frozen in the carbonite slab." The Agent raises his eyebrows, part confusion and part amazement at the same time. He leans over the message, and then exhales through his lips before he straightens himself upright. "Colonel, even if this is not true, I suggest that we take it at face value and investigate immediately." His face is calm and stoic, although his dull brown eyes finally show a hint of emotion, a desire to get hold of the Director ASAP. "I request permission to take one CompForce Assault Squad with me and board the vessel to investigate. I also request that I be assigned this squad for the duration of the investigation and further on until they are no longer required. We have no idea if the Director has been compromised, or not, and we are to assume, by regulation, that the Director has been compromised. Yes, Colonel?" Colonel Desson nods his head. "Approved." He looks toward the CompForce liaison nearby, and shouts out orders for the liaison to accommodate one Assault Squad for Dreven. "You're correct, Sergeant. Until we can ascertain his status, I am temporarily revoking his military powers pending a formal determination by the Select Committee. If it is him, bring him back here immediately." A firm half-bow from the Field Coordinator. He straightens himself upright and stands there for a few more moments before he takes a step back. "Understood, Colonel. All rights will be revoked and he will be informed of his status as a compromised Agent until the Select Committee can verify him. I will question the prisoner as to ascertain the situation." He turns as he swiftly moves out, waiting for the Assault Squad, then barks a few orders. He stops by the armory on the way, equipping himself with weaponry, his own personal choices. A suit of armor and an AA Shotgun for close combat. He didn't expect violence, but it was stupid to be unprepared. Part 2: Rendezvous at Selene At Selene, the ISB Commissar on duty has taken control of the situation. The freighter in question has been brought on board the system's defense flagship by tractor beam, its captain detained, and the carbonite container has been brought into a secure ISB facility on board the vessel, under armed guard. There, they await the arrival of Task Force Inquisitor's ISB detachment. The Commissar, a human named Bossil Perlee, waits silently as he reads over medical records provided by the chief medical officer of HIMS Executor during the time of Lord Vader, along with the records of other carbon-freeze scenarios documented by medical officers at Bespin throughout the years. The detachment arrives via shuttle, landing inside the flagship's docking bay, the Assault Squad and its current squad leader, Dreven, leave the ship and immediately proceed to the ISB facility, taking the quickest route there and bypassing the usual docking procedures and regulations, the detachment finally comes to the Facility and enters, before the ISB Agent and his current Squad stand there, awaiting guidance. The slab of carbonite lies on its back, suspended in the air by a repulsor-driven cargo carrier. The blackish stone would normally be in the shape of a perfect rectangle, save for the outline of the body frozen within. From what can be discerned of the body's shape, it is clearly human. Nearly naked, the body is only clothed in a pair of tattered pants. Markings all across the body show either signs of torture, or trails of frozen carbonite marked into knobs and filigree from the freezing process. The man's face is drawn into an enraged expression, eyes tightly shut, teeth grinding together in a display of utter pain and torment. "Sir." The Commissar snaps to attention. "Bossil Perlee, Imperial Commissar." Giving the Commissar the formal half-bow, Dreven stands up straight. "Dreven Mercurio, a pleasure to meet you, Bossil." His tone is plain and simple, no hint of humor or malice in it. He turns his head to look towards the form within the slab of carbonite. His features knitting into a frown. "Are you sure this is the System Director?" The Commissar turns and motions for one of the troopers to come over. He takes a holographic palm-emitter, and holds it out for Mercurio to see. The image that displays shows that of Korynn Fleming's official ISB on-file headshot. A press of a button starts a synchronized program, which slowly matches a topographical scan of the carbonite slab with that of the headshot. After a moment, it begins chirping, and a bold-faced "97% match" appears. "Reasonably," explains the Commissar. "97% match. Alright then." The Agent's lips thin as he looks towards the carbonite slab. He then looks back towards the Commissar, giving the man a thin smile which then quickly fades. "The Empire thanks you, Commissar Bossil Perlee. Your quick thinking has secured what may be the Sector Director. If all turns out well, I will place a commendation for you. You were right to contact us in such quick time." He gives the man a half-bow. "Have the soldiers move the Carbonite into the shuttle we arrived in. Do you have any other relevant information for us, Commissar?" The Commissar smiles tersely. "Thank you." He then shakes his head. "Everything we know has been tight beamed to HIMS Inquisitor. Take these with you." He offers the datapad in his other hand. "It contains every medical record I've been able to dig up regarding carbon-freeze, the likelihood of his survival, and the after effects." Right hand extending, it takes the offered datapad and lifts it up, reviewing the notes for a brief moment before raising his head to look towards the Commissar. A single nod. "Thank you, Commissar." The Agent states, opening up a pouch on his belt and sliding the datapad into it. "I will review the information on my return to the HIMS Inquisitor." He gives one last formal half-bow. "Long live the Emperor." "Long live the Emperor." The Commissar turns aside, nodding to his troops, who then part ways and give Dreven clear access to the slab of carbonite. Lifting up a hand and motioning, the Agent turns and begins to leave the facility, the Assault CompForce soldiers moving in to push and guard the Carbonite slab on its way back to the shuttle. After boarding, there would be an immediate takeoff, then a quick leap to hyperspace. During this time, Dreven would then begin to review the medical notes on carbonite freezing and the after-effects. He had no doubt that if this was the sector director, he would survive. He was stubborn like that. Part 3: Back on Inquisitor Hangar Bay -- I2SD Inquisitor The immensity of the hangar is a tribute to the size of this vessel. This facility is able to refuel, repair and rearm vessels from the smallest Lambda shuttle to the larger Corellian Corvettes. It is kept flawlessly clean by the constant presence of scrubber droids removing debris and trash off of the finely polished deck. Very little space is wasted on this mighty warship and this is doubly true of the main hangar. Along the ceiling nestled in launch shrouds are the behemoths of the ground forces, from the fearsome AT-AT and AT-ST walkers to the older Juggernauts and Air Fortresses. Hanging out over the vast vacuum of space is the 'control tower'. From it, the deck chief can supervise the operations in both Hangars. Along either side of it rest the heavy-duty repulsor beams and the passageways to the even heavier tractor beams. The view from the hangar of the microcosm that is a warship might easily be compared to an anthill. Despite the vast numbers of ships that leave and arrive at the ship, crewmembers, pilots and naval security personnel are seen all over the place, from the security by the turbolift doors to technicians and their droids conducting repairs of vital parts on many of the shuttles and combat support craft. Forward of the control tower, the claw-like launchers for the ship's wing of TIE Fighters can be seen, as well as the gantries that lead to the fighter bays. Large blast doors, to the aft, lead to the cargo areas, where the ship's consumables are stored. Several sets of solid black doors mar the otherwise light gray finish of the hangar, they are the turbolifts that access the rest of the vessel. ---- The COMPNOR Shuttle - COMPNOR 2 - slowly comes to land in the docking bay with a hiss, most of the docking bay cleared ahead of time via ISB orders. Landing gear deployed and the shuttle finally comes to a stop. The aft of the COMPNOR 2 Shuttle slowly opens, and four CompForce Assault Troopers, decked out in full equipment, come down onto the main docking bay. They spread out into a proper position, standing there with their weapons safeties off. Then, the rest of the squad descends from the Aft, a long slab of carbonite held up by an anti-grav ensures that the squad moves slowly and deliberately until the carbonite hovers over the floor of the docking bay. The final man to move from the shuttle is the ISB Sergeant Dreven Mercurio, wearing a light suit of armor and a AA-8 Shotgun. He pauses after leaving to close the shuttle up and secure it, before pressing his fingertips to the comm's in his ear. "The Prisoner has landed and is being escorted to the proper facilities." "Copy." The response from the ISB Control Center comes through Dreven's earpiece clearly. "Interrogation facility four is prepared and ready, a medical team awaits." Watching from the deck control center Krieg stands with his hands clasped behind his back. He doesn't move but to watch what the controllers are doing when they clear different craft and personnel around the newly arrived shuttle. He knew it was a COMPNOR shuttle, but didn't have the latest brief on what they were transporting today. Looked like a prisoner in carbonite from what he could see, though what exactly they had in mind for this being was their own business. ---- Interrogation Chambers -- I2SD Inquisitor One of the pentagonal corridors houses the ship's Interrogation Wing. Here, the corridor is lined with windowless doorways that lead into dark, poorly lit, dismal rooms. There are larger rooms for group humiliation and confinement purposes, and smaller rooms for more intimate moments of terror. Every room seems dark and technologically primitive. Behind their walls and floors, however, are housed every terrifying instrument of torture one could imagine. Chains and machines, electrical and chemical devices. Medical equipment complete with not only life saving items, but drugs any civilized system would have outlawed. Only the interrogator knows fully what diabolical devices lie behind the walls, ceiling, and floor. The decks are sheet metal, with little drainage holes - the type that can be cleaned of any undesired substance by water hoses, making the interrogation clean up easier. ---- The Carbonite block is quickly brought into the ISB section of the ship, and then that section is sealed off to non-ISB Personnel. An effective lockdown that prevents unwanted intrusions on this most sensitive matter. The Carbonite block is studied to ascertain the health of the Sector Director within, and then it is defrosted. Within one of the chambers is a large tank of Bacta, while at the same time small probes are installed into Korynn's flesh as he is then inserted into the bacta, an oxygen mask placed over his mouth so he can breathe while resting and healing. The lights are off, except from two. One over the tank of Bacta, and the other over the single Agent standing there. Dreven Mercurio. The oxygen mask is fitted with a microphone for communications, but can be remotely switched off. The bacta tank is sealed as tight as an airlock. All the fighting in the world couldn't save anyone now. When the carbonite block is thawed, it begins at first with a whirring sound. Slowly, the stone around Korynn's heart begins to glow a soft orange. In moments, it begins to glow a brighter red, until his entire form is glowing with melting carbonite. As the molten stone peels away from his lips, the gritted teeth separate and turn into what seems like a desperate grasp for air that fails, as his lungs are still frozen. It is an immensely painful procedure, compounding to the pain that wracks his body from the injuries he's already sustained. Within moments, the rest of the stone has thawed away, and Korynn draws in a sharp, desperate breath of air. It stings his cold lungs, causing him to shudder. The shuddering spreads to his entire body, which threatens to go into a full-blown seizure, until the medics take care of him and get him into bacta. Clearly, the man has been tortured without mercy. However, the signs of torture are those of amateurs. Each of the fingers in his left hand are shattered in multiple places, his right arm broken, bruises and cuts all over his body. His back is the most disturbing area, where chunks of his flesh have literally been whipped free by the use of a whip, most likely a Neuronic whip judging by the charred flesh at the edges. All in all, a forensic examination tells that many of the wounds are fresh, while still others are older, having healed dangerously without the use of medical treatment. Further examinations would naturally reveal more truths, but would also take time. After some time, Korynn slowly begins to open his eyes, his body seeming shriveled with the immense cold of being back into the 'real world'. Doggedly, his eyes look about blindly, but he can tell that the oxygen mask is keeping the healing liquid out of his lungs. He's clearly suffering from hibernation sickness, which brings him dangerously towards the brink of either falling into a coma or worse. ---- Korynn Korynn Fleming is a human male, whose middle-aged stature barely breaks six feet in height, though firm and well defined. Broad shoulders support a long, stretched face, which shows the signs of a recent arrival in his forties. The lines of his face are well chiseled, though having recently been tortured and encased in carbonite, they are marked with the scabs of recent wounds and unkempt facial hair. Dark brown eyes sit beneath thin eyebrows, and his thinning, black hair has grown without grooming, looking ugly and mismanaged. Currently he's close to naked, clothed only in a tattered and torn pair of gray pants. His normally chiseled and well-trained upper body is beaten and bruised. Long marks from the use of a Neuronic whip form a hatchwork of deformation across his back, with some marks extending down his sides and the front of his body. His skin is dirty and uncared for, the wounds across his body both aged and fresh. ---- Dreven Mercurio simply stares at the man floating within the liquid. He doesn't speak, and simply stares. His head turns, casting a look towards a blank wall behind them, and nods. Inside of the bacta-tank, sonic generators allow voice to travel through the liquid so that the blind Sector Director can hear the voice that he will learn - and already knows - for a while. "Prisoner 198A. Your body is suspended within a tank of bacta. Your wounds will heal. And then you will be submitted to questioning by the Internal Security Bureau to ascertain your status as either compromised or full Agent. Your rank and military powers have been stripped from you until your hearing before the Select Committee. You will hereby be known as, called, and always referred to up until the hearing as Prisoner 198A. Failure to understand this will result in punishments as defined by me. I am Dreven Mercurio of the Internal Security Bureau." There is relief. It registers when his heart rate rises, but does not spike as would a prisoner in fear. He is home... not strung up in some Hutt facility or waiting a war trial amongst the rebels. Even if this turns out more poorly for him than his red-tape trial at Bespin, he will at least live or die in service to the Emperor he loves. Blinking slowly, Korynn nods his head and stares off into space ahead of him, relaxing. "I understand." His voice is hoarse and weak, but he otherwise does not address Dreven in a personable way. He knows what he would do if he were in Dreven's shoes, after all. "Good. Prisoner 198A. You will be cared for an fed and watered until your body is fully healed. Your body will heal quicker than you may expect. We have ensured that you are kept in top-rate Bacta for the duration of this. The questions we will ask you will be deep and scathing, and at any time if I feel like you are not answering me fully, I will ensure that your punishment will be a thousand fold worse than that which you currently have resting upon your body. You know my abilities, Prisoner 198A. Is this understood?" "I know your abilities," replies Korynn, his voice still weak. However, life begins returning to his eyes, and although his entire body shivers with icy cold, vigor begins to fill his dark eyes. "Give me a taste of something decent. The scum who abducted me are as careless as they are stupid." It's almost as if he wants a dose of pain... pain he knows and is familiar with, to offer him the dignity of being tortured in a way that just might actually be effective. "Do not worry, Prisoner 198A. You will be dealt with in a proper manner. You know as well as I do that we have procedures and ways of treating prisoners that is respectful as well as thorough. We will not hold back on you as you know we shall not." The sound of feet coming together in a sharp stamp. "If the Select Committee find you suitable to return to duty, we look forwards to it. You are Imperial, Broken or Not, and we shall make sure that you are treated as one. Long live the Emperor." A shudder of a sound comes from the breathing mechanism, and Korynn's eyes close in a moment of relief, as if hearing those last words was life to his soul. "Long live the Emperor," he says, his voice going softer and reverent, though strangely gaining a type of strength that was not there before. The lights dim within the interrogation chamber as the Prisoner is allowed to rest. The sound of feet moving, with equal distance and pace as the ISB Agent exits from the chambers, and then shuts the doors. He turns, swiping his keycard as he enters in a code, properly locking down the cell to all but ranking ISB officers. He takes a step back and puts the keycard away. "Glory to the Empire." The Agent speaks aloud, then turns and makes his way from the Chambers to report to the Colonel.